A
view of destroyed buildings in Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between
Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, as seen from southern
Israel, April 2, 2024. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Dozens of filings flood ICC's Israel-Hamas case, causing delays
THE
HAGUE, July 23 (Reuters) - More than 60 governments and other parties
will be allowed to file arguments to the International Criminal Court as
judges consider whether to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other leaders on both sides of the Gaza
war, court documents show.
ICC
prosecutors say there are reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant as well as Hamas leader Yahya
Sinwar, military chief Mohammed Al-Masri, and another Hamas political
leader Ismail Haniyeh, bear criminal responsibility for alleged war
crimes and crimes against humanity.
In
documents made public on Tuesday, judges granted permission to 18
states, including the United States, Germany and South Africa, 40
organizations and individuals to file written submissions by August 6.
They are related to prosecutor Karim Khan's request in May
for the arrest warrants in relation to the Hamas attack on southern
Israel last October 7 and the ensuing Israeli assault on the Palestinian
enclave.
About
1,200 people were killed in the initial Hamas attack and around 250
taken hostage, according to Israeli counts. Nearly 40,000 Palestinians
have since been killed in an Israeli assault on Gaza that has cause a
humanitarian crisis.
Israel
and Palestinian leaders have dismissed allegations of war crimes, and
representatives for both sides have criticised Khan's decision to seek
warrants.
While
there is no set deadline to rule on the prosecution request for arrest
warrants, allowing dozens of legal arguments will slow the process by
the three-judge panel deciding on the matter.
The
requests for intervention were not made public by the court but some
are expected to be a response to a request by Britain to file arguments
on whether the court has jurisdiction over Israeli nationals due to
provisions in the Oslo Accords which say the Palestinians do not have criminal jurisdiction over Israeli nationals.
Some
countries who have filed a request including Germany, the United States
and Hungary have condemned the ICC prosecutor's move to seek warrants
for Israeli officials.
Others,
including Spain, Ireland, South Africa and Brazil have been vocal in
their support for the investigation into alleged crimes against
Palestinians.
Israel itself has not asked to intervene, but the Palestinian Authority did and was among those allowed to make submissions.
The
ICC has had an ongoing investigation into any alleged crimes within its
jurisdiction committed on Palestinian territory and by Palestinians on
the territory of Israel since 2021.
In
that year, ICC judges ruled that the court has jurisdiction after the
Palestinian authorities signed up to the court in 2015, after being
granted United Nations observer state status.
Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg and Anthony Deutsch, Editing by Angus MacSwan